AS Blackburn town centre developed during the late Sixties, one element was essential to ensure the town’s success - the availability of car parking.

The Sixties was the decade which saw a massive increase in the number of car owners and a shopping trip was just as likely to involve ‘getting the car out’ as it was hopping on to a bus.

These photos from the archive show how Blackburn adapted to this - first with its new market development off Ainsworth Street which included a roof top car park and then the shopping centre development which again took to the skies to accommodate motorists.

As well as being a great record of a changing townscape, the pictures will be a delight for anyone with an interest in what are now seen as classic cars ranging from the Morris Minor to the Mini and from Hillmans to Wolseleys.

How many of the makes and models on these photos can you identify?